Belle Vie
by Rayrawl
Summary: Second in the series after 'Marmee Blake', cross over with Merry Gentry series, At 32 weeks pregnant, a chain reaction of events leads to a sticky situation involving the council. Will the help of another very powerful, very pregnant preternatural be of use or will Anita loose everything so loves to the one person who wants to rid her of everything?
1. Maternity leave

**Anita Blake/Merry Gentry cross over, second in the series after Marmee Blake. I'm trying to keep updates in a pattern but my muse is being annoyingly absent. I hope you enjoy it anyway :)**

* * *

There was once a time when I thought hunting the preternatural, staking vampires, having metaphysical relationships and trying not to be destroyed by a vampire council were hard things to do. Obviously, until then, I'd never been pregnant. At 32 weeks, with twins, I felt like I was about to explode. I constantly needed to pee, I was always both hungry and nauseas', I had hormones coming out of my freaking ears. Add on the metaphysical crap that came with being pregnant, like constantly increasing needs to feed the _ardeur _and suddenly having a somewhat deeper and creepier connection with the men in my life, you got the hardest thing I'd ever done. Which was why I was now at the RPIT headquarters with Micah and Nathanial, explaining to Dolph why I wanted to go on maternity leave 5 weeks earlier than I told him I would be. I'd come back to work about a month after he confronted me at Animators Inc, all was not forgotten, but we were working on being forgiven.

'Anita, we need you to come in on cases for as long as possible! You're only 35 weeks gone, Tammy worked right up until the day she gave birth.' Dolph was trying to reason with me, but I just looked at him sceptically.

'Tammy went into premature labour and Larry nearly had a heart attack trying to get to her on time.' Dolph sighed but reached over to grab his pen and sign the forms that meant I wouldn't be called In for anything until I was ready to come back. He handed them to some new officer he'd shouted in, having him take them to human resources, when Zebrowski sauntered in and grinned at me.

'Come back to work Blake? Can you even reach your gun around that bump?' I laughed at him, I'd gotten used to baby bump jokes in the first 5 months after Jason and Nathanial took it upon themselves to comment on how big I'd gotten since the last time they'd seen me, even if it'd only been five minutes.

'Not coming back, leaving early. But I could still shoot you faster than you could get your gun out of that holster.' He laughed back at me and then reached out a hand to help me up and walk me out to where Micah and Nathanial were waiting for me. Nathanial was holding a cup of coffee and I looked at him hopefully until he held it out and mouthed 'decaf' at me. It had been a contention between us for months, he'd read that pregnant women shouldn't have caffeine and had began swapping mine for decaf, I was always trying to get around it somehow, to little success. I pouted at him but took it anyways.

'Katie and I are coming over to dinner next week, okay?' Zebrowski said as he handed me off to the boys, smiling at them both as greeting.

'Yeah, I think Nathanial is making chicken something or another, so we'll see you Wednesday.' I replied, sipping on my coffee and wincing at the taste. Before I'd gotten pregnant I could take my coffee any way and still enjoy it, now, just a grain too much sugar and it made me feel sickly. Nathanial noticed and took it back from me, giving me an apologetic look that I smiled at. It was something we'd all been doing a lot more recently, smiling. We'd had no issues with the council for a while, my darker powers were remaining locked up for the time being, and with the amount of sex I'd been having recently, everyone was pretty happy.

'Wednesday then, see ya!' Zebrowski called over his shoulder as he made his way back to Dolph who was kind of glaring at us from his office doorway. Micah, Nathanial and I took that as our cue to leave, heading back to the circus before Jean-Claude and Asher woke for the day.

* * *

'_Ma petite_, I do not know why you fight it so much.' Jean-Claude sighed, holding the dress against his chest in mock exasperation. Asher was watching us with a small smile turning the corners of his mouth up. 'You know that dresses are the best kind of maternity clothing, and you look so wonderful in them!' Jean-Claude continued, once again holding out the dress to me.

'I didn't wear dresses before I got pregnant, I'm less likely to wear one now.' I pouted at him, running a hand over my stomach. I was laid on the sofa in his living room, my feet in Nathanial's lap so he could massage them and my head in Asher's, who was softly running his fingers through my hair.

'You looked beautiful in dresses before you were pregnant and you will look beautiful now, however I shall leave this for this evening for you seem very comfortable there.' I smiled at him and he sank down on the floor beside where I was laying, his head tilted back and watching me over his shoulder. I reached out a hand and ran my fingers through his hair like Asher was doing to mine, opening my strong hold over the shields between us so we could all feel the joint pleasure of fingers running over scalp and through hair. Jean-Claude sighed contently and closed his eyes, Asher did the same, and I turned my attention back to Nathanial who nodded at me. Now was the time to ask them.

'Jean-Claude, Asher?' I murmured, trying not to break their contentment too much.

'_Oui, ma cherie_?' Asher replied, making my skin tingle with the way his voice brushed over my skin. He was getting much better at projecting his voice like Jean-Claude does.

'Nathanial, Micah and I were talking yesterday about names for the children.' I began, trying to find a way to phrase this. 'And we were thinking, if you wouldn't mind too much, if we have a girl, that we call her Julianna?' Both vampires froze into that stillness that only old vampires can do, Asher's fingers paused in my hair and I pulled my hand away from Jean-Claude's head. The tension was too thick, almost hard to breath through and I began to back peddle.

'I mean, it was just a thought. I can understand if you don't want to. We can find another name for a girl.' Jean-Claude turned so suddenly that both he and Asher were leaning over me at the same time all of a sudden.

'_Non, Non ma petite._' He looked up at Asher who gave a tiny nod, I thought I could see the beginnings of red-tinted tears in his eyes. 'We would be honoured if you would name your child Julianna. Honoured that you would remember her that way.' Then suddenly everyone was chuckling, and kisses were being pressed into my forehead and my cheeks and my mouth, along and across my stomach until someone reached Nathanial and gave him and kiss too. The kisses were light and happy, until they weren't. They began to change into something deeper, they lingered longer, nips on the collarbone and breaths on ears became more and more frequent until I felt the _ardeur_ begin to rise in me.

'Jean-Claude..' I whispered, half a moan and half a protest. He knew how much I usually wasn't in the mood for sex and so moved until he hovered above my mouth, his lips a hard thought away from mine.

'You are beautiful, and we want you. Just be content. We love you.' He whispered, reassurances that had been murmured a hundred times over the past months, but I relented and opened my mouth as his tongue sought entrance. I felt Asher shift, and then the cool wetness of him leaving opened mouth kisses along my neck, across my collarbone, licking and biting lightly. I could feel Nathanial's hands moving up to the waistband of the tiny pyjama shorts I was wearing and he began to pull them down slowly, laying warm kisses against my thighs as he went. Eventually the shorts were somewhere across the room, and Nathanial's kisses were making their way back up my thighs when all three of them suddenly stopped. I groaned and opened my eyes, finding them all hovering like they were listening to something.

'What is it?' I muttered, trying to unbutton Jean-Claude's complicated shirt to distract him.

'_Ma petite_, Anita, stop. Something is wrong.' His hands caught mine and held them still. 'Something is wrong with you, can you not feel it?' I scowled at him and shook my head.

'I'd know If something was wrong with me Jean-Claude.' I tried to lean up to kiss him again, but he shook his head and they all went back to looking like they were listening.

'It's through this new, complicated connection we all seem to have.' Asher murmured, looking up at Jean-Claude. 'I can feel it, as it seems you both can. I wonder then why Anita canno-' I cut him off with a cry. I knew what they were feeling now. God it hurt, a pain so tight and horrid across my abdomen that I felt like the world was splintering. Suddenly, all three off them were no longer leaning on me, but over me. I could feel Asher's fingers at my throat, checking my pulse, I could feel Nathanial pressing his hands against my stomach, feeling with his enhanced senses for any changed, Jean-Claude was doing the same thing, but he leaned his ear against my stomach. I knew he was listening for the twins' heartbeat's like he'd done so many times when we'd lain in bed together. I tried to focus on them, but the pain was only just beginning to recede and I was trying to catch my breath.

'Jean-Claude.' I whimpered. 'Jean-Claude what was that?' He was suddenly kneeling beside my head, stroking hair away from my face lightly.

'I do not know, _ma petite_, a guard is ringing for Lillian.' He replied, still stroking my face. I just nodded, trying to remember how to feel normal after that excruciating pain. Nathanial coughed, attracting the attention of the others. I was too tired now to look up at him.

'Er, guys?' He murmured. 'I think we need more than Lillian.' I tried to open my eyes and figure out what he meant, but settled for trying to evaluate my own body with my other senses. There was nothing out of the ordinary, mostly, until I reached where Nathanial was now kneeling between my legs. It was damp, and warm, and suddenly I knew what the pain was.

'No, no no no.' I whispered, pushing myself up onto my elbows with Jean-Claude's help.

'Anita, Nathanial. What is it?' Asher's voice was laced with worry and concern.

'Her waters have broken.'

'I'm in labour.' Nathanial and I spoke at the same time.

'It's too soon, it's too soon. Something's wrong!' I shouted at Jean-Claude, fisting my hand around his shirt as he watched me with a new kind of horror in his eyes. Asher was suddenly up and running between guards, barking instructions too quickly for me to follow. Apparently, Jean-Claude was listening closely enough because he helped hand me off to Asher when he began to lift me from the sofa.

'It's alright, _ma cherie_. We will not let anything happen to you.' Another pair of cold hands were suddenly holding one of mine and a calm washed over me that I welcomed.

'Damian' I whimpered. 'Something is wrong.' My eyes were clenched shut.

'I know, Anita. I know.' He replied in his deep voice. Then suddenly we were running somewhere, and the air was going too fast, it was hard to catch a good breath, and none of that mattered. Another pain ripped it's way through my stomach, followed by strong kicks inside of me, and eventually, it got too much. I didn't care where we were going, as long as the pain would stop. It kept going and going, we still hadn't stopped somewhere, and then the world went dark.


	2. Unexpected Help

**It's not as long as it could have been, but it's half past midnight and my muse is being a little unhelpful. I hope you kind of enjoy it anyways, even if we are still in the 'introduction' part to the story!**

* * *

I can't have been unconscious for long, but we were suddenly in a car. I was cradled against someone's chest, a cool silk shirt telling me it was either Asher or Jean-Claude, there were thin fingers wrapped around my ankle, caressing bare skin, and an unnatural calm was flowing through me. That was Damian, but through the pain that was still tearing its way through me, I couldn't figure out who or what else was in the car with me.

'Jean-Claude..' I managed to whisper, crying out not soon after and clutching at the material covering my swollen belly. I could feel the distressed kicks of the children inside of me, knowing that something was going very, very wrong. 'Jean-Claude, it hurts.' I whispered, tears I didn't realise were building in my eyes slipped past closed eyelids.

'_Ma petite_, I know, I am sorry. We are going as fast as we can towards Lillian. Try to focus on staying awake while we get there, yes?' His voice is behind my head, on the other side of Asher, who I figure is holding me, to Damian. I nod my head slightly, trying my hardest to relax as Jean-Claude's fingers begin to comb through my hair soothingly, but the pain is unbearable. Screaming, I turn my head into Asher's shirt, fisting my hand around any fabric I can find until someone leans down and whispers in my ear.

'Bite if you wish to, _ma cherie_, scream and cry as much as you like. We will make sure nothing happens to you.' Taking a breath, as so not to hurt him too much, I manage to speak through clenched teeth.

'This isn't right..' I pant, exhausted with the pain wracking my body. 'Someone, something is doing this to-' I gasp, trying not to scream again. 'doing this to me, pulling them out or something, Asher..' I can't hold the scream back anymore, burying my face once again into his chest and letting it out muffled by the ruffles of his silk shirt. The longer I let myself scream into Asher's shirt, the less I can feel things around me, and the more the black spots in my vision come back. Once again on the verge of passing out, I'm pretty much convincing myself that just this once being unconscious might be the better option. The pain is like nothing I've felt before, like being stabbed and shot and burnt all at the same time, never ending, and somewhere inside I know that without the connection to my men and them taking some of the pain, things could be a million times worse than this. My eyes are just slipping closed when Jean-Claude's fingers in my hair still, and Damian's grip on my ankle grows tighter, and the vampire in the front of the car is talking.

'There's someone in the middle of the road.' It sounds like Truth, but it could be Wicked, I'm so far from coherent that it doesn't even matter right now. What does matter though, is that even through the pain and the near-unconsciousness, I can feel the power rolling off the being that is apparently stood in the middle of our path to help.

'I have never smelt anything like this before, Jean..' Asher mumbles, or at least I think he's mumbling, because everything suddenly sounds like it is underwater.

'Faerie.' I manage to gasp out. 'It's faerie.'

'How can you tell?' That's Nathanial's voice, and he's crying, his usually bright and cheerful tenor is shaky and rough.

'Bloody bones.' Jean-Claude's fingers begin their motions in my hair again, because he can remember that hunt. I can feel the confusion from the others, but now really isn't the time to explain.

Feeling confusion is the first sign I actually realise that anything but pain is making its way into my mind. The next is that I can feel the power from the faerie before us still, rolling and pulsing, but not towards us. It's creating a shield, something invisible but strong, and whatever power had been at work on me is lessening, bouncing away on the barrier this person had protected us with.

'They're helping. Stop the car and talk. He's stopping the pain.' I can hear murmurs and quiet discussions going on, but I'm too busy concentrating on the fact that I can breath, and I can feel the children settling down again in my stomach, and my heart rate is dropping down to something less likely to kill me. A moment later, the SUV comes to a standstill, and the door in front and to the left of me is opened. Damian's hand disappears from my ankle and the panic I'm still feeling comes rushing back until Jean-Claude, finally able to talk in my head again, comforts me.

_'He is just discovering who this being is and why they have decided to help us, ma petite, do not worry. We will keep you safe.'_

I breath deeply, trying to keep calm until we figure out what's going on. There's still terror, somewhere deep inside, because I know that just beyond the shield this being is throwing up around us is someone who's trying to rip my children from my womb, literally. Over the past year, I realise we'd fucked a lot of thing up in the preternatural community, but this was taking things to the fucking extreme.

A cold wind tells me Damian is back, his hand once again wrapping around my bare skin, and I blink my eyes open to look up at him. He's as stoic as ever, but there is a tightness to the corners of his eyes that is only ever there when things are very stressful. He'd come to me with that tightness, but over the years it had slowly disappeared, it hurt to see it back again.

'That man says he is Galen, and that there is another by the name of Minstrel out there who is helping keep you safe from whoever is doing this. They say they experienced similar things with their queen, a woman by the name of Merry, and felt it directed at someone else as well. That's why they're here.'

'Merry Gentry.' I whisper, recalling the human name for the half human- half Fay queen of the unseelie court, her and her men had been in the tabloids recently. Damian nods his head. 'Merry is having twins, and it probably due any day now.' I look up to Asher to explain, because I can feel that Jean-Claude already knows this information.

'He wishes for us to follow him into their land so that they may help keep you safe while we figure out who is doing this and what to do.' Damian continues, still watching me.

'Do you trust he is telling the truth?' Jean-Claude respects Damian's opinion, having been around longer and experienced more than he, even though he was not quite a master before he became part of the triumvirate.

'He seems to be honest and telling the truth, and really, if we turn him down we are at the mercy of whoever is doing this. Keeping Anita safe right now should be our main concern.' Asher nods, his chin brushing the top of my head and the ends of Jean-Claude's fingers. He looks down at me, his expression one of conflict, Asher never had trusted that easily someone who claims to want to help.

'What do you wish to do, _ma cherie_?'

'I don't want to experience that pain again, Asher. Please, if they can help, let them.' I whisper, letting my eyes close slightly again as I cuddle further into him, relishing in the ability to feel anything and do anything but experience the pain.

'Very well.' I hear Asher reply, and then Damian's touch is gone again. We wait a while, I assume Damian and the faerie man Galan are making arrangements, and I try my hardest not to let the exhaustion I'm now feeling take me over. It's so hard to keep my eyes open and my mind awake, that I hardly hear it when Damian returns.

'He says there is a place we can park not far from here, but from there we will need to walk about five minutes. He'll lead the way so he can keep the shield up.' There's nods, and a car door closes, that feeling of peace washes over me again, and my battle against sleep is lost for a little while.

The blast of cold air that hits my face before I'm shielded by a warm body wakes me. The scent of vanilla is enveloping me, and I snuggle deeper into Nathanial's warmth, his familiarity.

'Where are we going?' I mumble into his neck, breathing him in deeply. I can feel the others around us, Asher, Jean-Claude, Damian and Truth, walking in a perimeter. There are other, older, preternatural beings around too, the feeling of magic and faerie is everywhere around here.

'We're heading into the Unseelie mound, the faerie queen and her men are promising to keep you safe.' I can hear the smile in Nathanial's voice, feel it against the top of my head, and there is clear relief in his tone that at least things are looking up now. I chuckle at him, like he wanted me to, because it's something that even in our weird little lives, I never expected to hear. I snuggle further into him, forcing him to wrap his arms tighter around me, and I must have drifted back into sleep because suddenly it's warm, and the spine tingling magic and feeling of faeries is stronger, and there is the strangest sound of a beautiful musical doorbell being rung. Then the vertigo hits, and my head is spinning so hard that I think I might just die right there.

'Welcome, Master Vampire of St. Louis, and welcome Anita Blake.' More introductions might have been made, but I couldn't focus on them, my head was still spinning. 'Welcome to the Unseelie court.' A smug voice finishes, a voice that is proud and arrogant and makes me want to punch things, but I can't act on that, because for the _third_ goddamn time today, my vision is growing darker, and then everything is black.


	3. Introductions

**I'm not liking the chapter, but until my muse comes back, it's all i can offer you. Think of it as a filler chapter, and hopefully things will pick up from here.**

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It was warm and cold at the same time. That was the first thing I realised when I woke up. There was someone pressed against me on either side, and I wanted to open my eyes and look at who it was, but I was so comfortable and content in that moment that it just wasn't high on my list of things to do. Until I heard people I didn't know, conversing with people that I thought I did know, somewhere else in the room and the events of the past- I don't really know how long- came flooding back. My heart started to race as I blinked, and then suddenly, Jean-Claude was hovering above me.

'_Ma petite.._'

'What's going on, where am I?' My voice is dry and small, scratchy from screaming too long when the pain had taken over my body.

'We are in the home of the faeries. The Unseelie court. Queen Meredith offered her assistance while we discover who is behind the attacks upon you both.'

'Oh..Okay.' I turned my head sideways to look at Nathanial, who was pressed lightly against my back, looking at me with a worried expression. 'Hey.' I whispered to him, and he let out a kind of sound that was between a sob and a laugh.

'Hi.' He murmured in reply, pressing a warm kiss to the back of my neck. 'You had us scared.'

'I'm sorry.' I whispered back, covering his hand on my stomach with mine. 'Oh.. Oh no. Jean-Claude, are the babies…?' I'm quieted by his hands trailing softly over my face.

'Shh, shh, we can still hear their heartbeats, they have moved around. They are fine.' I let out a breath I hadn't realised I'd been holding.

'But.. My waters broke. Doesn't that mean I'm in labour.'

'_Oui_, we believe so. As is the queen of this court, but it appears to be going very slowly. Since the shield was put into place, neither of you has had any other signs.' I pause, trying to figure out what to do next, how to figure this out before something else happens.

'Who did this?'

'We don't know yet, _ma cherie_, but we are trying.' Jean-Claude helps me sit, along with Nathanial, when Asher's voice reaches me from the end of the bed. He is flanked by Wicked and Damian, and a bunch of people I don't know. My shoulders tense and I lean further into Jean-Claude's side when I realise there are people here, Fay here, that I do not know.

'Do not worry, _ma petite_, they wish to help you.'

'We do want to help you.' The man who speaks is kind of.. Green. His hair has a green tint, so does his skin. He's wearing a green shirt. He moves a little closer to the bed to introduce himself. 'I'm Galen, this is Rhys.' He gestures to another man, standing just behind Wicked. 'We are part of the queens.. Guard. What happened to you also happened to her. We felt your pain as you came closer to us.'

'Is she okay?' I ask, warily, he seems friendly enough, but I'd been tricked enough times to know that didn't necessarily mean he was safe.

'As well as can be, we are all worried for both of your health's. She would most like to meet you.' Before I can say anything, Jean-Claude speaks.

'She will need to feed, before we go anywhere.'

'Sure, our kitchens can bring you something up.' The man named Rhys comments, moving closer to Galen the green man.

'That would be appreciated, but she also needs to feed other needs. One's we will need more privacy for.'

'You need privacy to..feed?' Galen asks, his eyebrows raising in question.

'_Oui_, she holds a vampire's hunger for the _ardeur_. As do I.' I blush at that, because it's still embarrassing to have to explain to people that you have to have sex or you'll end up killing people you care about before you die yourself.

'The.._ardeur_?'

'Yes, it is from the marriage of the marks that made her my human servant. Feeding from lust is a power of our line.' We watch them as they realise what we're talking about.

'Oh, so the rumours of your kiss are true?' Rhys asks, rather bravely. Jean-Claude and Asher chuckle.

'Not all, _non_. But some. We do have many complicated factors, we are the most powerful kiss in America at the moment, we do feed from sex.' Jean-Claude says it without shame, but I just blush harder, pulling the attention of the other vampires in the room with the blood now pulsing heavily around my body. 'Also, the others will need to feed from blood.' Jean-Claude nods towards Asher, Wicked and Damian with a smirk.

'We have donors on hand, I believe. Volunteers.' Galen replies, like it's not an uncommon occurrence to have to feed vampires in the Unseelie court, and maybe it isn't.

'_Bon._' It's Asher who speaks this time. 'Then we should go now and allow you to feed properly before introductions are made. Put the..call out when you are done?' Jean-Claude nods and smirks in reply, his cool breath running across my ear making me shiver, bring the hunger to the forefront of my mind. Both Galen and Rhys shiver too, looking perplexed.

'What was that?' They ask in unison.

'The _ardeur_.' I whisper in reply, turning to press a kiss to Jean-Claude's jaw as Nathanial begins to press kisses along my neck again. With the amount I'd been feeding since getting pregnant, I'd become less ashamed of doing this, it was easier to accept when it happened. I don't hear a reply, just others being ushered out of the room and a door closing quietly, before the men are upon me, and I'm not longer thinking about anything else.

* * *

Queen Meredith doesn't look like I'd imagine a queen to look. She's wearing pyjama shorts and a tank top that exposes the underneath of her swollen belly, and her hair is pulled into a untidy pony tail. Not that, at this very moment in time, I'm any more acceptable. We had managed to clean up and get reasonably presentable before we were introduced, but I doubt it would have mattered. For a queen, she seemed particularly uninhibited with general court attire.

'Ms. Blake.' She smiles tiredly at me, letting a very tall, very dark men help her up from the love seat she is settled in. 'It's a pleasure to finally meet you. I've heard a lot about you recently.' Meredith holds a hand out to me, which I take gently. I'm not really sure how to approach her, she seems friendly and genuine, but she is the queen of the dark faerie court. There had to be danger somewhere, right?

'Anita, please, and it's a pleasure to meet you too, Queen Meredith.' I smile back at her, and she chuckles, leaning into the side of the dark man, who wraps his arm around her protectively just as Jean-Claude is doing with me.

'Please, Meredith or Merry. No need for titles here.' With a smile, she turns to the men beside me.. 'Ah, Jean-Claude, Asher. It's good see you both again.' Asher reaches out to take Meredith's hand, pressing a kiss to her knuckles with a smile.

'And you, _ma belle_.' He passes her hand to Jean-Claude, who kisses directly over the spot that Asher had just pressed his lips to.

'I only wish it could be under better circumstances.' He replies, finally giving her hand back.

'You guys know each other?' I turn to Jean-Claude, an eyebrow raised in question.

'_Mais, oui ma petite_. We are both leaders of preternatural beings in the same city. We have had chance to be acquainted before this.' There's the shrug that means both nothing and everything following that statement, so I let it drop while they make the rest of the introductions, between both our people and hers. Doyle, the dark man at her side, is most intrigued by Damian.

'Viking warrior vampire. I recall you from your early days.' His deep voice rumbles across the room.

'A very long time ago, when you and yours were worshipped still as gods.'

'A very long time indeed. And you, one half of the Wicked Truth, have you and your brother parted ways?' He turns his attention to Wicked, who is half shielding Nathanial behind his shoulder after one of the men in the room looked at him like they realised just what kind of submissive he was.

'Never, Doyle. The emergency caused us to separate. I suspect we must find ways to contact the people we left at home, they will be getting worried.' Honestly, I think it's the most I've ever heard Wicked speak in all the time I've known him. Meredith's expression changes from one of amused curiosity to concern.

'Oh, of course. I mean we can try mirror or sword contact, but phones will only work outside of here.' Jean-Claude chuckles at the confusion that sweeps me as she mentions mirror and sword contacts.

'There are ways, _ma petite_, to use reflective items to contact others. I am sure Truth will have his sword with him, and Micah and the others will be near a mirror somewhere.' I just shrug, I still don't understand, but everyone else looks like it makes pretty good sense. Even Nathanial.

'Okay, can we send maybe Wicked, Damian and Nathanial to do that? Then we can try and figure out what's going on here?'

'Oh, sure.' Meredith chirps. 'Rhys, Frost, do you think you can take them into the next room and try to find a way through.' Both men in question nod, and Rhys flounces off to lead the way. Frost and Meredith's fingers brush as they pass, and her face softens at the contact. It was a look I'd seen on my face, and on those of the people around me, often enough to know that she loved him.

It's not until that moment that I realise she introduced 'part' of the men she surrounds herself with. The numbers were stacking up, and she had a number that rivalled ours. I was becoming a strange mixture of relaxed and worried. Juxtapositions of emotions if there ever was one. This was a lot of men, a lot of protection, a lot of testosterone for just two pregnant women to deal with.

I could only hope they didn't share anything close to the hunger we did, or things could be about to get very interesting.


	4. Culprits

**I am so so sorry i took such a long break here. My muse was lost in this fandom, but hopefully i can get back in the swing of things. I'm not really impressed with this chapter and it's short but it's a foray back into this story and this fandom. I hope you don't hate it too much :)**

* * *

"Micah wishes to come with three others, Truth and two members of our kiss for food." Wicked reports, stepping just inside the door. He has his hands folded behind his back, but the bitter scent of blood and the small stain on his jacket are obvious, inspiring awful worry. Wicked shakes his head, followed by a small nod in our direction and I take it as reassurance that he is fine. We turn our attention to Merry and her men as she converses quietly with the tall dark one, Doyle.

"Doyle seems interested in meeting the rest of this legendary Wicked Truth, but what do you mean by food? We have donors here for blood, and well stocked kitchens." It's nice that she seems to have realised Micah is a non-optional entity, perhaps an understanding forged of women with more than one man in their life.

"Ah, members of our kiss, myself and Anita included, feed from the _ardeur_. Lust and sex, and often this would not be an issue for a short stay but Anita's appetite has increased in this along with others and she will not participate in casual relations." I blush furiously, ducking my head. Merry tilts her head slightly to the side, assessing us, considering us and suddenly I'm back to feeling paranoid and edgy. Enough so to leak into the others, Jean-Claude reaching out and grasping my hand lightly, thumb rubbing gentle circles over my knuckles.

"Maybe when our children are not under metaphysical attacks, we can actually sit and discuss the truths of the rumours surrounding your kiss, Jean-Claude." Merry smiles, garnering a nod from him that is mostly likely just a false agreement to her request. He never, not with unknown others of older races that could possibly destroy us, discuss what is truth and what is lie surrounding the suspicions of our people. Apparently, she accepts his slight nod as acquisition to her need for knowledge and turns back to Wicked.

"Tell your people they are welcome, and there will be people by the mounds waiting for their arrival." Wicked bows, backing out of the room with a small glance to Jean-Claude and myself. The boys go back to conversing with Merry and her people, distracting her from talking with me directly, sensing my unease, while I wait for the others to return.

* * *

"That was so odd." Nathanial whispers to me once he has skipped back into the room with the others, something between confusion and fascination in his voice. "That guy, Rhys? He kind of bled onto a mirror and searched somehow for an open connection, and then suddenly Micah was looking at us through the mirror laughing an-" Jean-Claude shoots him a _'you need to be quiet now' _look that has Nathanial blushing at his own excitement.

"You can tell me about it later." I whisper back to him before grasping his hand and pulling him close into my side. His hand drops to my swollen stomach, stroking gently, allowing a sense of familiarity and safety to wash over me before Damian begins to speak to the crowd assembled in the room.

"It is very generous of you to allow so many of our people in your territory, Meredith." He smiles blindingly, his green eyes glinting in what others would perceive as gratitude, and with what I know is falsification for the sake of our safety. "Micah will be here within the hour. He is bringing with him the Vampire Truth; Jean-Claude's _pomme_, a lycanthrope named Jason and another by the name of Jade. I hope that will be appropriate." Damian is still smiling gently, tense lines around the edge of his mouth as I nod in approval of his choices. Jade has not liked being far from me since she had arrived, even less so now that I was heavily pregnant, and Jason was a good choice all around for pretty much everything. I was worried that now that Richard had recovered from the control Olaf's witch had had over him he would demand to come, but grateful that he had clearly not pushed to be here. He was over bearing and sometimes painful to be around, guilt ridden for his actions, and in the middle of an attack is certainly not the best place for him yet.

"Given that we seem to be under some kind of attack, I'd say the more the merrier. And if you trust them, we will accommodate them." Doyle nods to them in reply, hand on Merry's shoulder protectively.

"Speaking of an attack, can someone please tell me what the hell that was?" I blurt out, leaning into Nathanial's shoulder as the snappish level of my voice filters back to my own ears and glancing around apologetically. Everyone of my own people beside Jean-Claude and Asher have frozen slightly, expecting rebuttal for my attitude, but Merry just waves it off and frowns.

"I'd like to know that myself, according to everyone we asked here it isn't magic that's been felt before. All I could feel was that it wasn't just focused on me. I could feel you as you got closer to us."

"Is that why the pain got more intense the closer to the mounds we got? Before your people extended the shield to include us?" I rest my hand protectively on the swell of my bump over Nathanial's, feeling the way his fingers twitch minutely in time with each of the children's heartbeats. Merry nods, her own hand covering the top of her own stomach's swell.

"Since Minstrel put up the shield blocking the magic, about three hours ago, I've had seven contractions. It's incredibly slow, but according to our healers I am in labour and there is no stopping it now. Have you felt anything since you got here?" The green man, Galen, is sat before her now, rubbing a hand up her calf in a way that I myself am familiar with, a subtle comfort. I shake my head.

"A strange pressure, and some twinges, but nothing like contractions, and nothing like that pain earlier." I confess, reaching out my other hand and twining my fingers with Jean-Claude, who is leaning into Asher with an arm around his waist. Damian and Wicked have taken up stances behind us, bodyguards during this strange situation. "Do you have any idea who could do this?"

"Could be a lot of people, a lot of things. The Unseelie Court is not friends to many after my aunts reign and my cousins madness. We've made ourselves some enemies." Merry smiles tightly, clutching at Doyle's hand on her shoulder. The silver haired one shifts closer, pressing himself into her back in reaction to her unease.

"The same, I fear, can be said for ourselves. I suspect a long list of _coupables _between us." The youngest of us in the room, Nathanial, myself and Merry, turn to him as he uses a French word we do not understand.

"It means culprits." Asher chuckles, nudging Jean with his shoulder with a smile. As usual in unknown company, Asher is hiding the scars on his face with shadows and his hair, throwing false, blinding smiles at people. Still, even now, it pains me to see him put up this defence. Causes a heartache to know he still doesn't understand how unbelievable beautiful he is, especially with the scars littering his body.

"Ah, _oui_, culprits. I fear a long list of them, although I'm sure we could narrow the list down to those with the most ill feelings towards us, _non_?" His accent, strongest when he is under stress or worried, laces his voice heavily today.

It is in no way reassuring, the way the men with me keep reverting to long since learnt tells. Giving away their worry, their anxiety, their downright fear if the way Nathanial is clinging to me is anything to go by. Although, I'm sure it is mostly for my welfare, it is still disturbing to see. The last time this amount of discontent having been shown was when I returned home unable to control the power of the Mother inside of me.

"How about we start with the first on our respective lists and work on ruling them out one at a time? Who would want to hurt us the most?" I inquire, leaning forward slightly, causing Nathanial to adjust himself, wrapping his arms around my swollen stomach, head resting on my shoulder blade. I can feel his warm breath against my hair and neck, the scent of his vanilla is intoxicating and I can almost feel the ardeur rise in response to the promise of sex and love wrapped in the package that is Nathanial. Instead, I focus on Merry, who has turned to her men in silent conversation, and force the ardeur away with the cool that comes from the well timed brush of Damian's fingers against my neck.

"Our biggest… culprit at the moment would be my uncle. The king of the Shining ones. The Seelie." There is hard hatred underneath Merry's still pleasant tone, whispers of disgust and the same residual fear that I felt when I recalled the things Olaf had wanted to do to me. "He- _took_ me when I first found out I was pregnant and well- I'm sure you read the news reports." Her voice tapers off into a tiny whisper, one that would have been missed had we not had preternatural hearing. It takes a second of brain wracking before I recall what she had spoken about, the kidnap and sexual assault of the fairie princess(at the time) by her uncle had been huge news. Painful news that came after my own almost experience. Meredith's men have gathered closer, surrounding her gently in support as she takes a deep breath, centring herself. Opening the shields slightly with Jean-Claude, I begin to whisper to him, hoping that our conversation will be private here in the fairie mounds.

"_Our biggest enemy right now is Belle. Do you think we will be safe from her here with the ardeur always so close to the surface and her so close to breaking through now that the mothers power is locked down again?" _He nods almost beyond perception, and the others around us do not seem to have noticed. Whether that is because they can not hear or are just versed in the ways of being polite during a mind to mind conversation, I do not know. Although, that thought itself, it's absurdity, makes me want to giggle madly. A response I'm going to put down to hormones and stress, because I _do not _giggle.

"_Even if we are not, we must consider the possibility, and she is being targeted also. She deserves to know, ma petite." _Jean-Claude's smooth, gentle voice filters into my mind, sending shivers up my spine. My body has recently taken to missing him whenever we are not directly touching or our shields are open to each other. With a sigh, I turn my attention back to the fairie queen and her men.

"Our biggest person of interest right now is a woman named Belle Morte. A member of the now disbanded European council of Vampires. She has been targeting us for years, but situations have prevented a full attack. Perhaps she is finally ready to retaliate after what we have done to her?" The question is directed towards Jean, who shrugs his shoulders, tense with worry. It was something we had already considered as we began the assembly of a new, American council with our kiss and Jean-Claude at its head. Belle had made it quite clear, in a heated invasion of my mind not long after I absorbed the power of the mother, that she would destroy us once she found means.

Maybe now, she had found her means.


End file.
